Washington DC
CNN
–
A preliminary report from the Canada Road Safety Commission found that a regional jet on the Delta Air Line landed before it flipped upside down, leaving behind a “hanging” passenger at Toronto Pearson International in February, causing landing gear support to break.
Investigators said less than three seconds before the touchdown, the plane warned the pilot with an alarm that he heard it descended quickly and that the plane was banking to the right. When it hit the runway, it was still falling rapidly, tilting 7.5 degrees to the right, the report says.
The plane, the CRJ-900, operated by Endeavour Air as Delta-connected flight 4819 from Minneapolis to Toronto, landed on February 17 in a fiery collision that tore its wings and rolled the plane upside down.
All 80 passengers and crew were alive. The injury to 21 people, including two, has become serious.
On a touchdown, investigators smashed a side stay attached to the aircraft's right main landing gear, retracting the gear and breaking the right wing between the landing gear and fuselage.
When the wings were separated, they were loaded with 6,000 pounds of jet fuel, leading to fire and explosion.
The cockpit door was closed so the pilot had to climb from the emergency hat on the ceiling of the cockpit, the report says.
Thursday's preliminary report does not identify the cause of the crash or damaged landing gear. Formal decisions regarding possible causes can take up to 600 days.
“Accidents and incidents rarely arise from a single cause,” Joan Marie, chairman of the Canada Transport Safety Commission, said in a statement. “It is often the result of multiple complex, interconnected factors, many extend beyond aircraft, and their operations extend to broader systematic issues.”
Investigators looked into the flight control components of crashed planes but did not take note of obvious existing malfunctions, the report said.
According to the report, investigators investigating the crash recreated several approaches and landings on the CRJ-900 simulator.
Going forward, the Safety Commission will examine the metals that make up the wings, landing gear and wing certification, landing technology and pilot training, evacuation, and training and coordination of flight attendants in emergencies.
“For everyone at Endeavor Air and Delta, nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and our people,” Delta Air Lines said in a statement. “That's why we are participating in an investigation led by the Canada Road Safety Board, so we refrain from the efforts of AIR and Delta, respecting the integrity of this work that continues through our final report.”
